Join the pilot

New-home mailbox checklist: your first 90 days

Do these in order and you’ll get the mail you need, stop most of what you don’t, and know which envelopes to ignore.

Before or right after you move

  • File your change of address at USPS.com, not a look-alike site. $1.25 online ID check, or free on paper at a Post Office.
  • Choose permanent or temporary on purpose (see below).
  • Update the senders you want: banks, insurers, employer, IRS (Form 8822), DMV, voter registration.

Week 1

  • Set up Informed Delivery at your new address.
  • Start a “not us” list of names that aren’t your household.
  • Keep your closing papers handy to check mortgage letters.

Weeks 2–4

Weeks 4–12

  • Track who keeps mailing and when you asked them to stop.
  • Still arriving after 12 weeks? Ask again in writing.
  • “Postal Customer” flyers and political mail will continue.

Rather have us handle it? Join the pilot ↓

After 90 days, most of the wave should be gone. Check the mailbox when your daily preview shows something worth the walk.

Permanent or temporary change of address?

A permanent change forwards First-Class Mail for 12 months; ad mail is forwarded only if the sender asks. The change-of-address file licensed to mailers is built from permanent changes, so a temporary forward (up to 12 months total) may mean fewer catalogs find you. The trade-off: forwarding stops on the date you set, so update the senders that matter yourself.

Sources

USPS change-of-address FAQ; USPS PostalPro (NCOALink); OptOutPrescreen.com; DMAchoice FAQ.

← Why junk mail spikes after you move

Or let us run the checklist: Move-in Reset

Forward us your free USPS Informed Delivery preview. We set up the big opt-outs with you, ask mailers to drop former residents, flag look-alike letters, and follow up until the mail stops. Mail from companies you use is never touched without your yes.

$25 one-time · Covers your first 90 days · Pilot opens this winter · No card today

← Back

You’re on the list

Thanks. We’ll email you when your pilot invite is ready. No card needed.
Which would you try first?(required)

Mailbox Zero is independent and not affiliated with the U.S. Postal Service.